Notice me
by Akirafanatic
Summary: Haruichi feels invisible. His friends have an idea of how to fix that.
1. Chapter 1

"Not that we don't love having you here," Niki said slowly, "But what about your baseball friends?"

Haruichi looked at the ground and smiled a little bitterly, his right arm coming up to grasp his left. "They don't…seem to notice me. Unless I'm playing, or helping Eijun-kun or Furuya-kun with their homework…sometimes I feel like I'm invisible. They haven't even noticed that I haven't been around lately. Not even my brother." His voice got quieter towards the end, until the others were almost straining to hear what he said.

Setting her notebook down, Niki hugged her younger friend. She didn't realize it had been that bad. She couldn't say anything, because she'd always been so loud and determined that people always noticed her.

Yuta frowned at the wall. Sure, Haruichi was a little quiet, but it wasn't hard to notice him. And when you got him talking about something he loved or was passionate about, he tended to be louder than Niki was.

Kotarou didn't get it. Haruichi was so unique, and fun to be around. How could his teammates just forget about him? If he just cut his hair, or even changed the style so those beautiful eyes were showing, he'd have nearly the entire school throwing themselves at his feet. Hell, he could easily start acting or modeling and get to the top without trouble. And Kotarou had a brother who was an actor, so he'd met a lot of actors or models.

Leaning his head on his hand, he said, "You should start modeling."

The others looked at him, and Haruichi's face turned an adorable shade of pink. How could anyone forget about this precious boy? Niki looked down at the male still in her arms and nodded slowly, a grin beginning to form on her face.

Yuta glanced at Kotarou, before his eyes moved to Niki and then finally down to Haruichi. "They'd eat him alive."

Tisking and waving a finger back and forth, Kotarou said, "And that, my dear Yu-chan, is why _we_ would have to be with him." Seeing his friend frown, he rolled his eyes. "Oh come _on_ Yu-chan! You could be the manager. You know you'd enjoy it. You'd get to make business deals that benefit us and make the others feel like crying. You'd get to tell those who bother us to fuck off. And you'd be in control of the schedule."

"And what about us?" Niki demanded. Haruichi was like a little brother to her. She wasn't going to let him go into a world that would eat him up without her.

"We'd be in charge of the press as well as keeping others away and taking care of Haru-kun."

Throughout this exchange, Haruichi wondered if they were ignoring his protests on purpose or because they couldn't hear him. "Don't I get a say in this?"

"Nope!" Frowning at Kotarou, Haruichi huffed.

"Look at it this way," Yuta said, "If you did this, people wouldn't forget about you. They wouldn't see you only as someone who can help them. They wouldn't see you when it was convenient for them. They'd have to acknowledge you. And you could make enough money to let your parents retire and do what they wanted."

He knew that was a low blow, as Haruichi had always felt guilt about having their parents pay for baseball or anything else he and his brother wanted to do when it was rather expensive, but it was the truth. It may take a while, but they all knew Haruichi would be at the top. He just had to want it first.

Biting his lip, Haruichi looked at his friends. "Can…can I think about it?"

Ruffling his hair, the three smiled. "Of course you can," Kotarou said. "And if it makes you feel better, I'll talk to one of my brothers friends who's a model and see if he'll talk to you about it and let you know what it's like."

"And I'll look up some information about managing," Yuta promised.

Niki laughed. "I'll see about going with Ko-chan to talk to some of the agencies and find out what kind of stuff we'd get to help with also."

Haruichi smiled and nodded. "Thank you."

* * *

 **This came because I felt that Haruichi sometimes gets ignored or isn't really noticed by some people outside of baseball. Probably just me, but meh. Let me know what you thought!**


	2. Chapter 2

BRAVO Models

"Are you sure this is a good idea?"

"I thought you wanted to do this."

"I do, but…"

"Then let's go!" Kotarou cheerfully pushed his smaller friend into the building. "Don't worry about it. My brother's girlfriend works here, and everyone else I talked to said it was a good choice."

Yuta furrowed his brows. "I thought it was his boyfriend who worked here?"

Kotarou shrugged. "Nishimura-san dumped him a few months ago. He also works here though."

Niki wound her arm around the pink haired teen. "Don't worry Haru-chan, everything will be fine."

Yuta nodded. "She's right. So stand up straight and look confident." He watched his friend straighten, but the small teen still looked nervous. Shaking his head, he figured it was a start. They could work on the confidence issue later.

It had been a little over a week since they'd had the initial conversation about Haruichi modeling. During that time, the pink haired teen had thought a lot about it. He'd even called to talk to his parents about it. They had been supportive, saying that if it was something he wanted to do, then they'd cheer him on.

He'd wanted to talk to his brother about it, but it the elder Kominato hadn't been interested in listening. He'd simply said he had other things to do, or just shooed him away saying he was too tired. Eijun was always at practice or talking to someone else, and Furuya was either practicing or asleep.

That was when Haruichi had really felt alone. It was a big decision for him, but none of his friends on the team would listen to him. He'd even run with Eijun all night in an attempt to talk to him but the pitcher just cut him off and complained the entire time!

It was times like that he wondered if he should have chosen a different school. If it hadn't been for Yuta, Niki, and Kotarou, he probably would have asked his parents if he could transfer back or to a different school. Not that he thought it would have made a difference, but at least he wouldn't have been so close to his older brother, only to feel so far and unwanted.

When he'd told his friends that he wanted to go for it, everything had moved so fast. Yuta had found an audition happening and Niki had taken Haruichi to the spa she went to, not only to try and help him relax, but also to get his nails done and skin taken care of before they went to get his hair cut and styled so, in her words, "his amazing eyes could finally be seen and adored".

Kotarou had then used an old IOU his older brother had promised him to get Haruichi some designer clothes since all the pink haired teen had consisted of their school uniform, the baseball uniform, and shorts or sweats with some T-shirts and jackets.

Needless to say Haruichi was a little more than uncomfortable with the way not only people were looking at him but the fact he couldn't exactly hide behind his hair as he used to. He wasn't sure how he was supposed to juggle modeling – if this worked out – and baseball, but Niki said she had talked to the coach and gotten permission to miss a few practices because it was off season and they weren't going to be playing anytime soon.

He still wasn't sure how she'd pulled that one off. Coach Kataoka was pretty strict about practice.

Just before they entered the building, Yuta shoved a hat onto his head, telling him to pull the visor low and make sure his face was covered. "So they won't know what hit them," He'd said, his grin disconcertingly like his older brother's.

While he wasn't sure what that meant, Haruichi was happy for something to hide behind at least for a while.

The main lobby was massive, and the small teen found himself staring in slight awe. He would have stopped and stared for a while, but Kotarou's grip on his arm forced him to keep moving. With his gawking at the building and people inside, Haruichi had no idea where he was or which way they'd come from.

Before he knew it, the four were in an elevator and Niki and Kotarou were straightening out his outfit and making sure his hair wasn't too badly messed up from the hat. If anything, the small teen was just glad the outfit he'd been gifted with was a little more conservative as it was beginning to get colder outside.

It was supposed to be the height of men's fashion according to Kotarou's brother, but Haruichi couldn't tell.

When they arrived at the correct floor, Haruichi was once again pulled along. Thankfully it didn't take long to actually reach the room they were supposed to be in for their audition. Yuta had decided they'd start small, and go for a glasses ad. His reasoning was that it wouldn't be mainstream, but it'd get Haruichi's picture out there. Niki and Kotarou agreed as it would also draw attention to the pink haired teen's eyes, which were unique and – according to them – one of his best features.

He just hoped that he wouldn't disappoint his friends if he didn't get it.

Standing in front of the door, Niki hugged her small friend. "Don't worry Haru-chan, just go in there and do your best!"

"You've got this!" Kotarou said, tossing teen two thumbs up. He and Niki would wait outside while the audition was taking place.

"Ready?" Yuta asked, one hand on the door handle. Taking a deep breath in an attempt to calm down, Haruichi nodded.

* * *

 **So here's the next chapter. Let me know what you thought! And I'll try to remember to update each Sunday for this!**


	3. Chapter 3

Dropping down next to his friends, Yuta grinned at them. "Remember that glasses shoot you did a few weeks ago?"

Haruichi nodded. How could he? He was so nervous throughout the entire thing. He wasn't used to all that attention being on him.

Yuta laughed a little. " _Apparently_ , they had great luck with it." Three confused faces stared back at him. Rolling his eyes, he sighed. "They want you to come back and do another one. Instead of a small ad though, they want this one to be for some posters and billboards."

Haruichi looked close to fainting. A small ad was one thing. But _billboards_? _Everybody_ would see those!

Niki was beyond excited. "That's fantastic! See Haru-chan! They're _already_ seeing how perfect you are for this!"

Kotarou was the only one – besides Haruichi – who didn't seem too excited about this. "Are you sure? Aren't we going a little too fast? I thought we were going to stick with small ads for a while, just to get his name out there and so he can get a little more comfortable before we go to the bigger jobs."

Shaking his head with a wide smile, Yuta said, "That's just it. They _already_ have a male model for their posters and billboards. What they haven't been able to find though, is a good _female_ model to partner with him. Look, most people know Haruichi as a male student with short hair. Nobody's even recognized him as the one in that ad because he still straightens his bangs to cover his eyes."

Seeing the still skeptical look, Yuta explained, "If we give him extensions, who's going to connect the dots that _this_ ," he wrapped an arm around the near petrified Haruichi, "and the model in the posters are one in the same?"

Niki was nodding her head. "And this way, we can have more jobs because Haruichi has that almost natural androgynous look. Nobody will know if he's really a guy or girl. We can use that to our advantage later on down the road."

Kotarou slowly nodded. "Alright. Did they give you the details about this shoot?"

Yuta pulled out his small note sheet. "We have to bring four different outfits. Business, sporty, casual for warm weather, and casual for cold weather. The shoot will be indoors, and they'll provide the glasses. We're in charge of any hair and makeup. They'll provide lunch. Haruichi and this other male model they have will first have individual shoots, and the session will end with the two together. It'll be fairly long, so we should bring drinks and snacks."

"Anything else?"

"Yeah," Yuta grinned widely. "It pays a ton." Turning to Haruichi, he asked, "What do you think? I have to give them an answer soon, since the shoot is next month. If we decline, they need time to find another to take your place. Are you alright with doing this?"

The pink haired teen bit his lip and looked down. It was hard enough doing the first shoot, and that was only for a small scale ad. This would be much bigger, and with someone else as well. A lot of people would see it.

Niki squeezed his shoulder. "Think about it tonight and let us know your answer by tomorrow, alright?" Smiling gratefully at her, he nodded.

Kotarou stood up. "Let's go do something fun! Yuta, it's your turn to decide what we do!"

Rolling his eyes, the brunette said, "I don't want to sit still right now. It's too cold to do something outside though." Tapping his knee in thought, he suggested, "How about some volleyball?"

Haruichi huffed. He didn't mind volleyball normally, but with just two on two he was reminded on how short he was. Niki enjoyed teaming up with him and then at random time picking him up so he could spike it. Just because she was a _little_ above average height. Her and her long arms.

Knowing exactly what he was thinking, the other three laughed. "You'll be on my team this time Haru-kun," Yuta said.

"Short people sticking together!"

Yuta shook his head and muttered, "I'm only a few inches shorter than you Niki." There was no malice in it though. The two had gone to middle school together, and he knew how much she had been teased for being taller than everyone else. It was nice to see her confident about her height, even if it meant enduring a little teasing ever now and again.

Watching Niki drag her partner out the door and towards the gym, Yuta smiled. Offering a hand to their other friend, he asked, "Shall we go?"

/

Staring up at the top of the bottom bunk, Haruichi wondered if he should try out the new job. He'd probably be nervous, and would mess up a lot because of it, but they came and asked for him. That meant they wanted him, right? It meant they were willing to put up with a new person in the industry, who will probably make mistakes, right?

The dressing as a female wasn't very appealing, but it's not like he hasn't before. Between his parents and his brother, he didn't know who was worse. He smiled, picturing how his mother would react when she saw the photo if he decided to do it.

She'd wanted to have a little girl ever since she was little. Haruichi was the closest she'd gotten before being unable to bear any more children. When he was little, he hadn't understood why she had been so happy when he would ask to help her cook, or learn how to sew up the rips in his stuffed animals. He cried when she had bought him a dress, and that's when his father had sat him down and explained.

She didn't mean any harm, but he was the closest she'd ever get to having a daughter. Since then, on her birthday or for a special occasion, he –and sometimes his brother if he and their father could convince him to – would put on a dress or skirt and let their mother pretend, at least for one day, that she had the daughter she'd always wanted.

Haruna thought they didn't know she cried after each time, overjoyed that her boys would go through the effort just to make her happy and let her have the one thing she'd always wanted above all else.

Their father had been happy with two sons, but upset he hadn't been able to give his wife a daughter. He love Haruichi and Ryousuke, and was probably spoiled them a little too much. He worked hard to provide for the family, and supported his sons in whatever they chose, fully backing them even when it meant extra hours at the office to pay for it.

No matter how tired he was when he came home, he would play catch with them, or help them practice their swings, or just spend time with them before bed. The two never failed to let their children know they loved them.

Thinking about his parents, he smiled. He knew what his decision was. Quietly getting out of bed, he tossed on a jacket and jammed some shoes on before heading out to the pay phone. Depositing a few coins and punching in their home number, he waited for someone to pick up.

Relaxing at his mother's tone of voice, he said, "Okaa-san…I have a favor to ask. Do you think you can make me some clothes?"

* * *

 **Now we're getting somewhere! And he gets his mother's help! Let me know what you thought!**


	4. Chapter 4

"Are you ready for this?" Niki asked, holding her cosmetics bag. She was glad that Haruichi didn't need any foundation, which meant she hadn't had to go and specifically buy some to match his skin tone, and could simply use what she had. Even then he didn't need much, just a little bit here and there to enhance his features and make them a little more feminine.

Closing his eyes and taking a deep breath, the pink haired teen nodded. Opening his eyes and looking up, he flinched when she brought the eyeliner closer. "Hold still."

"I'm trying! It feels like you're going to poke my eye though!"

"Just relax. I know what I'm doing." Holding Haruichi's chin, she slowly worked the eyeliner on. It was stop and go with the continuous flinching, but she finally finished and stepped back. Nodding, Niki continued with a bit of blush and some lip liner. When she was happy with her work, she set down her tools and removed the towel from Haruichi's clothing.

"Alright you two," She said, turning the small teen towards Yuta and Kotarou, "What do you think?"

Yuta snapped a photo, having agreed to take some for Haruna – who had all but demanded his, Kotarou's, and Niki's numbers in order to keep in touch with what was happening with her baby as he didn't have a cellphone – and nodded. "Beautiful."

"Great job Niki!" Kotarou flashed her a thumbs up. Haruichi flushed, but smiled, fingering the edges of his clothing. His mother had been overjoyed at the prospect of making him his outfits for the modeling job – even more so when she learned what _exactly_ he needed to wear.

"Come on," Yuta offered Haruichi his hand, helping him out of the chair. Placing that hand in the middle of his shoulders comfortingly, he led him out to where they would be taking the photos. The male model was already there and finishing up his individual shots for the business clothing. The photographer had decided they'd do individuals and then partnered shots for each outfit, rather than having the models change into them twice.

Watching his partner for the shoot, Haruichi felt awe. He was radiating such confidence, and looked so at ease there in front of the camera. _'I wonder if I can be like that someday.'_

"You can and you will," Yuta muttered, causing Haruichi to jump slightly. He hadn't known he'd spoken aloud. "Come on, it's your turn now."

"Just relax and have fun with it," Kotarou grinned.

"Have some confidence in yourself," Niki murmured in his ear as she bent to give him a hug. "Your mother worked hard on those clothes just for you, just for this shot."

Feeling better with that reminder, he closed his eyes and imagined his mother was in the room with him. He wanted to make her happy. Just like on her birthday. _'Just pretend I'm doing this for her. Just like all those other times. I can do this. I can do this!'_

Bowing to those working on the set, he straightened and smiled. "My name is Taneshima Haru. Please take care of me." Kotarou had said that some models and actors had their own 'stage name' that they went under. Thinking about it with his friends, they'd decided to use his mother's maiden name and simply shorter his first name, as it was easier to remember.

Heading over to the photographer, Haruichi waited as he scanned the frames available. Picking a few up, he finally decided on a pair of thin, black rectangular ones – almost like the ones he'd seen Miyuki wear – and handed them to Haruichi.

Placing them on the bridge of his nose, the pink haired teen headed over to the set, attempting to distil as much confidence as he could muster. Placing one hand over his heart, he took a deep breath before turning about and smiling slightly at the camera.

Nodding, the photographer took one photo before saying, "Alright, put your right hand up as though you're pushing up your glasses – yes like that – and try not to smile. Turn to face your right – no, too much, a little more back this way, stop! Right there. Now tilt your head slightly – someone fix her hair please – and move just your eyes to look at the camera. Look just slightly more towards me. That's good! Just like that!

"Now I want to do one of you sitting. Pretend you're working on something. Put one hand under your chin. Perfect."

Haruichi didn't know how many different poses he'd been asked to hold, but it felt as though hardly any time had passed before he was calling the other model back over. Bowing to his senior in modeling, Haruichi said, "I'm Taneshima Haru. P-Please take care of me."

Giving him a bored look, the model said, "Nakimura Saito. I'm sure you've heard of me."

Off put by the reaction, Haruichi simply bowed a little again. He realized as he was posing with his partner that what he had taken for confidence earlier on was nothing more than arrogance. The taller male knew he looked good, and didn't seem to have any respect for anyone. When the photographer tried to pose him, Nakimura decided he'd look better another way and all but ignored the suggestion.

Haruichi suddenly knew why his portion had seemed to take so much shorter. _He'd_ actually listened to what he was asked, making things easier on everyone involved.

When they _finally_ finished their first shoot together and were asked to change into the sporty clothing, Haruichi heard the male behind him complain – not even attempting to be quiet about it – "Why did I have to get stuck with such a bland girl who has no taste in fashion?"

Pausing mid-step, Haruichi fumed. He didn't care about being called bland – he'd been called worse – but this…this _narcissistic bastard_ had just insulted the clothes his mother had labored an entire month over just for him.

Spinning on his heel, he slowly walked back to the set. Pointing a finger right into Nakimura's face, he said, "You are one of the most self-centered people I have ever met – and that's saying something! You came here for a job, and yet you ignore the people attempting to get the job done and won't listen to those who are in charge of this whole shoot.

"You disrespect everyone, and you insult the person working with you. You are nothing more than a spoiled child who needs to be taught some manners. Someone I care deeply about spent a long time making this – and all my other outfits – just for today. You have no right to insult the way I dress when you look like a wannabe punk in that too big, wrinkly, and _stained_ suit.

"It doesn't look like you put any effort into conforming to what these people have asked you to do. So kindly either get your act together and do what you're being paid to do, or go home and finish sulking there." Huffing, Haruichi turned and began stalking back to the dressing room. He didn't even notice the shocked looks on everyone's faces.

He was only a few steps away when a hand landed on his shoulder and he was roughly spun around. Nakimura looked furious, and his face was a blotchy red. Frowning, the pink haired teen grabbed the wrist squeezing his shoulder and jabbed his thumbnail into the soft tissue right at the base of the hand. Pulling it off, he used a move he'd watched his older brother do countless times before when protecting him and twisted it around until the models arm was painfully twisted behind his back.

"You will _not_ touch me again without my permission." Looking back at the photographer, he said quietly, "I apologize Yamaji-san, but I do not think I can work with this _person_ any longer. I'm afraid you'll have to find another model."

Finally letting go of the arm he was holding, Haruichi calmly made his way back to the dressing room. Changing back into the clothes he'd worn on the way to the studio, he gathered his four outfits and was about to leave when Kotarou grabbed them from him, smiling and gesturing the shorter teen to lead on.

Sweeping out of the room, Haruichi completely ignored the glaring Nakimura – who was rubbing his sore arm – and the still shocked staff. Yuta fell in next to Haruichi, and Niki trailed behind Kotarou. Stopping at the door, Haruichi bowed to the staff and said, "Thank you for having me. I'm sorry this didn't work out."

It was only when he was outside and the anger had worn off that what he'd done really sank in. Faltering in his step as his knees started to give out, he would have hit the pavement had Yuta not caught him.

Clutching his heart, he felt light headed. "I can't believe I just did that."

"Neither can we," Kotarou laughed. "You should have seen yourself! It was awesome!"

"You really stuck it to him back there," Niki agreed. "I'm proud of you."

"You did a great job," Yuta agreed. "It's too bad it didn't work out, but had I known what a bastard your partner was going to be, I never would have agreed to it."

Shaking his head, Haruichi smiled shakily at his friends. "We all knew there would be people like him. I just never thought we'd run into one so fast."

Maneuvering the pink haired teen onto his back, Yuta chuckled. "What would your brother and teammates say if you went off on them like that?"

"I'd pay to see that," Kotarou said. "Imagine, from the sweet, quiet Haru to loud, badass Haru." Snapping his fingers, he looked excited. "That's it! That's his next look! Yu-chan! Try to find someone that needs a punky look!"

Haruichi reached over and smacked his friend on the head. Kotarou pouted. "What was that for?"

"No reason."

"Niki~, Haru's being mean to me~"

"Maybe you shouldn't tease him like that."

"Come on! You know it'd be awesome! We could do a test run! Get him all punked out and send him to his practice like that! The team wouldn't know what hit them!"

"We are not going to do that," Haruichi said stubbornly.

"It does sound interesting…"

"Niki!"

"It's something to keep in mind."

"Yuta!" Pouting and resting his head on his friend's shoulder, he muttered, "You're all mean." The others simply laughed lightly.

"Come on," Yuta said, shifting the teen on his back, "We'll stop by somewhere for lunch before heading back. My treat." Seeing the eager faces, he clarified, "For Haru." Kotarou and Niki pouted, whining about how it wasn't fair.

Rolling his eyes, Yuta paused when he heard his phone ringing. Shifting Haruichi so he could get to the device, he frowned when he saw who was calling. "Hello?"

' _Kobekawa-san?'_

"Speaking."

' _This is Yamaji Kojiro.'_

"What may I do for you Yamaji-san?" He saw the others freeze from the corner of his eyes and felt Haruichi tense up.

' _I would like to invite Taneshima-san back to the photoshoot. We've fired Nakimura-kun – I never liked him anyway – and would like to know if she would be willing to finish the individual shots today. We would have to reschedule the group photoshoot when we find another suitable male to be her partner, but we'd love to have her back if she's willing.'_

Yuta couldn't believe it. The man sounded close to begging. "Please wait for a moment." Letting Haruichi down, he covered the mouthpiece with his hand and looked at the others with a smile. "They fired the bastard and want Haru back at the shoot. He said they'd finish the individual shots today and reschedule the group ones after they find another model."

Haruichi was almost gaping. "T-They want me _back?_ A-After what I _did_?"

Shaking his head, the glasses wearing teen explained, "Yamaji-san said he never liked him anyway. If anything, I bet they were all happy you did what you did."

Niki looked at the surprised teen. "What do you say Haru-chan? Want to go back?"

Thinking about it, the only reason Haruichi had been uncomfortable was when he'd been around Nakimura. If he was gone, then there really was no reason to _not_ go back. "If they want me to finish it, I guess it's fine." Smiling, he gestured to the bags Kotarou was holding. "I'd get to show off the rest of Okaa-san's hard work, so at least they wouldn't go to waste."

Nodding, Yuta got back on the phone. "Yamaji-san, are you still there?"

' _Yes, I am. Will Taneshima-san finish the photoshoot?'_

"Yes. Haru is willing to continue. There is a small matter of the pay however…"

' _I can assure you she will be paid what was promised for this session, and will be compensated for the next one as well.'_

"That's all well and good, but what about the trouble caused today? My model was insulted and nearly injured by the one _your_ company hired."

' _Nakimura-kun's agency_ _ **will**_ _be hearing from us about this matter, and will no doubt be willing to pay compensation as an apology for their clients behavior.'_

"While I appreciate the sentiment, I'd feel more at ease if I were to be there when you talked with them."

' _I will set up a meeting personally and let you know the date and time.'_

"I will be awaiting your call with the information." Hanging up with a satisfied grin, Yuta turned to his friends. "Let's go, shall we?"

"And what was that about?" Niki asked, nudging her friend as they started walking.

"Nothing you need to worry about."

Haruichi frowned at his friend. "Was that really necessary?"

Shaking his head and looking serious, Yuta explained, "The photoshoot was only supposed to be today, so for them to change it and ask you to come to another one beyond this is in violation of the contract we signed. They've agreed to fully compensate you for this shoot as promised, and are prepared to pay for the next one as well, meaning not only more money, but that they are in essence still keeping to the original contract and having us sign a new one for the new photoshoot they'll be asking you to do.

"As for me meeting with the other agency, they might try to pin the blame back over onto you for harming one of their models when you twisted his arm. At least with me there I can try and make sure that won't happen. We can't let anyone in this world push us over or believe that we'll take less than what was originally agreed upon or we'll never make it anywhere. So yes, it was necessary."

The pink haired teen looked down. "Sorry."

Sighing, Yuta shook his head. "Don't be. Your job is to look nice for the camera. Leave everything else to us, alright? We're your friends. We're going to have your back."

Haruichi smiled up at him and then at Kotarou and Niki who were nodding along with what Yuta had said. "Thank you."

* * *

 **And he gets his first taste of modeling! If you can't tell, I have no idea about modeling, but am making things up as I go! (Except the name of the agency, I looked it up on Google)**

 **Let me know what you thought!**


	5. Chapter 5

**I meant to have this up yesterday, but I'm having internet issues that will HOPEFULLY be fixed come tomorrow.**

* * *

"HARUICHI! NIKI! YUTA! YOU'RE NOT GOING TO BELIEVE THIS!" Kotarou ran into the classroom that morning, ignoring the glares from the teachers. Crowding around his friends, he held up his phone and clicked play on the video before they could ask what he was screaming about.

On it appeared a sequence of photos from the shoot Haruichi had finished a few days ago. He and his new partner, another fairly new model who was enthusiastic and kind, appeared both together and alone. Along the bottom of the screen was the name of the glasses company they'd done the shoot for.

A few seconds in, a voice said, _"Frames for every occasion."_ The last photo in the short, twenty second video was one of Haruichi glaring straight at the camera, his eyes intense behind the fake lenses and hair still slightly swirling from the turn. They could just make out the top of Nakimura's hair in the background.

When it ended, Haruichi let his head fall onto the table with a small thunk. Yuta was frowning. "They didn't tell us anything about this." Pulling out his phone, he excused himself to call Yamaji and figure out what the video was about.

Niki rolled her eyes and hugged her shorter friend tightly. "This is awesome!" She said softly, knowing he didn't want anyone else at school to know. "People are going to start taking notice of you!"

Kotarou put his phone away and pulled an empty chair over to sit in front of his friend. "Hey, this is what we wanted! Maybe not in this way, but it's a good thing."

Looking up at his friends, Haruichi sighed. "I know. It's just a little shocking it all. I didn't think they'd have anything ready for _weeks_ , but it's only been a few _days_."

"Think about it this way," Niki said, "Because of the jerk, they were already behind schedule. Don't you think they'd _have_ to speed things up a little in order to get the finished product out in time?"

"I guess…"

Kotarou put a hand on his friends shoulder and turned to the door as Yuta came back in, a smile on his face. The dark blond felt bad for the photographer. "Why do you look so happy?"

Taking a seat, the teen adjusted his glasses. "They violated our contract. _Again_."

"And that makes you happy because…."

" _Because_ , now they have to pay us for the violation. _And_ because they already put this out without our agreement, they now have to pay us for every view this gets."

They all looked to Kotarou's phone, eyes widening at the amount of views it already had. "H-How much per view?" Niki asked.

"Two hundred and fifty yen per viewing," Yuta smiled. "And since it's already been up for a while, even if they take it down it's circulated around to other parts of the internet."

"Poor Yamaji-san," Kotarou sighed. Yuta was a force to be reckoned with when it came to friends and money.

"He's lucky I didn't ask for more. He was in the wrong for violating the agreement we had. Besides, if we let them get away with something like this now, it'll only spell trouble in the future."

"You," Niki said, pointing at her friend, "Are scary."

Haruichi and Kotarou nodded their agreement, but Yuta simply smiled a little wider. "Class is about to start," He said, standing up and returning the chair to his own desk next to the pink haired teens, "I suggest you two return to your own seats."

Sighing dramatically, Kotraou returned the chair he'd borrowed to the annoyed teen standing behind him before making his way across the room to his own seat. Niki gave Haruichi one more pat on the head before ruffling Yuta's hair – causing the teen to frown in annoyance – and skipping out the door to head to her own classroom.

Smiling at his friends, Haruichi pulled out his things for class. He really was lucky to have met them.

/

Haruichi felt horrible. His head was spinning and his seatmates loud friends weren't doing much to help the headache he had. He'd woken up feeling bad, but hadn't wanted to get in trouble for missing practice, so he'd gone.

Forcing back the urge to get sick in the classroom. He'd never live that one down. Figuring a trip to the bathroom wouldn't hurt – just in case he _was_ about to throw up – he slowly stood from his seat, hands gripping his desk like a lifeline while everything spun.

Taking a few deep breaths through his nose, he waited until the spinning stopped before turning and making his way to the bathroom. He got as far as the door when he felt a hand grip his elbow and another arm snake around his waist.

Blinking up in confusion, he found his seatmates two friends on either side of him, with the teen he sat beside standing in front of him. He didn't want to risk opening his mouth, and was glad he didn't have to when the brown haired male simply slipped a hand under his bangs and rested it on his forehead for a moment.

Nodding to the other two, he began leading the way out of the classroom. As much as he wanted to protest, the pink haired teen was grateful for the support. His legs felt like jelly and he had to keep blinking his eyes as his vision swam.

He didn't even notice they'd made it to the nurse until the two on either side of him basically lifted him onto the bed. The sudden movement didn't do anything for his stomach, and he was thankful there was a trashcan nearby. Dunking his head into its opening, he finally gave into the urge and let the bile go.

He vaguely heard someone say something like, "That's nasty," behind him, but he couldn't be too sure. _He_ thought it was nasty.

It was only once he was finished that he registered someone was holding his longer bangs out of his face. Grabbing the offered tissues, he wiped his face and sat back, feeling even more drained than before.

The nurse offered him a glass of water to rinse him mouth with, and he took it gratefully. When he tossed the empty cup, he spied his seatmate hovering near the door, his friends gone. He nodded slightly in thanks, his cheeks burning with a combination of the fever and embarrassment. He got a nod and a small smile – more like the corners of his mouth rose a fraction – before the teen left.

After getting some medicine and instructions to rest from the nurse, Haruichi was left alone. He didn't mind. Closing his eyes, he let himself drift to sleep, hoping the coach wouldn't be mad at him for missing practice that afternoon.

He woke when he heard soft voices. Cracking his eyes open, he was slightly disappointed they didn't belong to his friends or brother. Rolling to his side a little, he tried to sit up, only to have three sets of hands push him back down.

"Nurses orders," A cheerful male said. Haruichi recognized him as one of the two people always talking to his seatmate during breaks. He was pretty sure they were in the same class, but the name escaped him.

"That was pretty stupid of you," The female commented lightly, "Coming to class when you're sick I mean. Don't you know you're supposed to stay in bed when you don't feel good?"

Haruichi flushed and said, "Sorry," Winching when his voice cracked.

"Feeling any better?" Nodding gratefully at his seatmate, he smiled a little. "I let sensei know you were sick, and made note of the homework we have. You can borrow notes from me later if you'd like." The pink haired teen was grateful.

"Thank you." The teen just waved it off.

"Do you want us to help you back to your room?" The female asked. Haruichi wasn't sure what her name was. Before he could politely decline, she shook her head. "Let me rephrase that. We're taking you back to your room. Where are you staying?"

"He's in the spirit dorms Niki," The lighter haired male answered. "He's on the baseball team, remember?"

Huffing, the girl – Niki – crossed her arms. " _Thank you_ for your information. I wasn't asking _you_ though, I was asking _him._ Unlike _some people,_ I didn't want to seem like a _stalker_."

Now the male looked offended. "I'm not a _stalker_. In case you haven't forgotten, Sawamura-kun enjoys screaming about the baseball team." Ah, he should have known.

"I'm sorry about them." Turning to his seatmate, Haruichi shook his head.

"Eijun-kun is louder." Feeling his face heat up again, he was about to hurriedly take it back when the three laughed. Haruichi didn't know why he'd said that – even if it was true. He normally didn't say things like that about his friends to people he hardly knew. He blamed the fever.

Helping him sit up, Niki wrapped his arms around her shoulders and grasped under his knees, slowly standing up. No doubt she remembered the events of the morning when he'd been lifted suddenly. He wanted to protest, but the three had already made it clear this was happening willing or not.

Instead, he just content himself to listen to the three friends bicker together, his stomach twisting – and not because he was sick. He shouldn't feel like this, he reasoned to himself, Eijun-kun and Furuya-kun were his friends. Of course the two were baseball freaks, and only seemed to care about the sport, but they were still friends.

' _Then why weren't they the ones who were there when you woke up?'_ That hurt more than he wanted to admit.

When they made it back to his room and he was once again in bed, the three waved to him cheerfully. "We'll come back and check on you tomorrow!" Niki said as they started to leave. "And if you're in class, we'll drag you back here and tie you to that bed!"

The taller male grinned. "Nurses orders."

When they were gone, Haruichi let himself smile, feeling much better than he had that morning – and not because of the medicine.

* * *

 **A little backstory into how they met. Let me know what you thought!**


	6. Chapter 6

"Are you sure I can get one?"

"It's your money, so I don't see why not."

"Yeah, but…"

"Come on Haru-chan," Niki said, "You _need_ one. How else are we supposed to keep in contact with you?"

"Would you rather have us around every second of every day for the rest of your life instead?" Kotarou asked. "You'll get sick of us pretty quick."

"You having your own cellphone will make it easier to get you the details about new photoshoots without the chance of someone overhearing," Yuta explained. " _And_ if you ever get lost we can track your phone and find you easier."

Haruichi pouted and turned away. "I only got lost _one_ time."

"Yes, and we very nearly had the entire police force out looking for you," Kotarou explained. "So – cellphone. Pick one. Make sure it's a smartphone though, you're going to want it for your job."

"Then we'll go to another provider and get you a regular phone for just you," Niki told him. "That way it'll make it harder for people to connect you to Taneshima Haru."

"That seems like too many phones," Haruichi complained, but began looking at the different smartphones.

"Speak for yourself. My brother has four."

"And why, pray tell, does your brother need so many phones?"

"I don't remember. Something about his work though." Kotarou grinned, shrugging his shoulders. "I've always had two myself, since his manager would call me if they were looking for him and he wasn't answering, so I don't really understand the issue."

"That's because most _normal_ people only have one phone," Yuta said. "But I think we all should get a second as well. That way it'll be a little easier to manager work and private calls."

"Why don't we just all put them on the same plan here then?" Haruichi pipped up. "I'll pay for it." It was his way of saying thank you to them for sticking with him and helping his with everything.

"Are you sure Haru-chan? That's a bill every month for four phones. Not to mention your other one you need to get."

"I want to. And I have enough for it, right Yuta?"

The brunette nodded. "I'm lining up some more work, so he'll continuously have money coming in. Not to mention it's still accumulating from the video."

"More work already? He just finished that glasses one two weeks ago!" Niki frowned at her friend. "You'd better not push him too hard."

"Hard? Niki, most models schedules are packed back to back day after day. I'm trying to keep Haruichi at one good paying job a month or so. If he can handle this, I'll think about increasing it, but as it is now I actually turned down a few offers already. They would have conflicted with either school or been too demanding for the amount they were willing to pay."

The girl looked embarrassed. "Oh. Sorry."

"That's alright. Just remember I'm also looking out for his health."

Haruichi interrupted the two by pointing to the latest model of smartphone. "Let's just get those and call it good. I've never had a cellphone before, so it doesn't make a difference to me."

Kotarou nodded. "A good choice."

"You're just saying that because you want the shiny new phone," Yuta drawled.

"So?"

Rolling his eyes, Yuta flagged down a sales associate and pointed to the phone. "We'd like four of those."

"Right away. Please follow me. Will all of these be separate?"

"No, they will all be on the same plan." Haruichi let Yuta take charge and wandered over to look at the flip phones. He figured that he could look now, so they can save time in the other store. He felt strange, being the first in his family to get a cellphone – two no less – and to not have his parents or brother there to help him.

Looking at a few of the basic ones, he eyed the two beside him. "Do you think I should get some for my parents?"

Niki and Kotarou stopped their conversation and looked down at Haruichi, who was still staring at the phones before him. The light haired teen shrugged. "I don't know. Is there any use in them having one?"

Niki elbowed her friend. "Of course there is! What are they going to do if they go on vacation? Use a payphone? In case you haven't noticed, those are going obsolete. Not to mention they can use it to take pictures instead of also lugging around a camera. And they can send Haru-chan the pics and keep up with what he's doing through texting rather than having to call each time and not know if he'll be able to answer." Nudging her friend, she smiled. "I think it'd be a nice gift. You still have to think about how much you have and will be spending on them though."

Haruichi nodded. "I know. I want to do something for them though. And this way I'll be able to talk with them more often."

Wrapping an arm around the shorter teen, Kotarou grinned. "If you want to do it, I say go for it. You'll have to ask Yu-chan first though. He's got all the details on the money."

Smiling up at the two, Haruichi picked up one of the basic flip phones. It was thin, and had a camera attached. It seemed easy enough to use and figure out. Most of them looked the same to him though, so he wasn't sure if one was better than another.

Seeing his confusion, Niki said, "That's one that most people wind up getting. I have the same thing, only last years' model." She held up her phone to show him.

"I'll get four of these then."

"Four?" Kotarou asked. "Not three?"

Looking down, Haruichi muttered, "I'm getting one for Aniki too." The two frowned but didn't say anything. If Haruichi wanted to get one for the older brother who hardly talked to him, then it was his decision. Knowing what his friends were thinking without looking at them, he clarified, "It'll be an early birthday-slash-graduation gift. Besides, Okaa-san and Otou-san should be able to contact him more easily too. He doesn't call as often as I do."

"You are such a sweet child," Niki cooed, pinching one of Haruichi's cheeks. "Your brother doesn't deserve you."

"I'm officially claiming you as my little brother," Kotarou said, pinching his other cheek.

"M odder dan do dou. Ad dad durds, pwese wed go." Rubbing his sore cheeks as the two finally let go, Haruichi pouted.

"I still can't believe I'm younger than you," Kotarou said. "And that doesn't matter. I said you're my little brother, so you're my little brother."

"You're _all_ of ours little brother," Niki corrected. "If we're going to survive this world and make it to the top, we've got to stick together as a family."

"Touching," Yuta said, coming up behind them. "Haru, all you have to do is pay and then we're done here." Nodding, Haruichi took out the card he'd gotten from his new bank and brought it over to the woman Yuta had been talking to.

Once the payment was through, the four gathered the phones and left the store. "They're all activated and ready, all we have to do is decide who gets which one," Yuta explained.

"I thought we had to do that before we activated them?" Kotarou asked.

"We can change it online. I went ahead and got on of each color. Black, white, blue, and red. Haruichi, which color do you want?"

"I want black," Haruichi said.

Yuta handed the phone over and pulled the white one out for himself. "Niki?"

"Wait, why am I last?" Kotarou complained.

"Because you already have two others," Yuta explained.

"I want the red one!" Niki said, giggling happily when she was handed the phone. Kotarou sighed but took the blue phone.

When everyone had their own, Haruichi brought up the topic of getting phones for his family as well. Yuta smiled a little when he heard the reasoning. "It shouldn't be a problem, but you may have to do a few more jobs just to make sure you can still pay for them. Do you think you can handle it?"

The pink haired teen nodded. "Thank you."

The other three just ruffled his hair, causing another pout, and headed to the next store to get Haruichi and his family some phones.

When they were finished and had all the phones together, Haruichi sat down to begin programming numbers in them – with the others help to make sure he was doing it correctly. He'd gotten two black and two white – just in case his parents didn't want the colored versions.

He picked out one of the white phones, and was giving one of the black ones to his parents – he'd put his mother down for it, but figured he could change it later if she wanted the white one. When his two phones had everyone's respective numbers, he programmed his family's ones with his number and the others.

Happy with his work, he gave them to Yuta who promised to send them to everyone. The only one Haruichi kept was for his brother. He figured he could give it to the older teen, since they both stayed in the same dorms. He wouldn't say he was the one who bought it, but would just say that it was a gift. Ryousuke could assume what he would from that.

Saying goodbye to his friends, he decided he'd give it to Ryousuke tonight. Getting back to the dorms was easy. Finding his brother was harder. The older teen wasn't in his room, and he wasn't out on the field practicing – not that anyone other than Eijun would practice when it was this cold – but he also wasn't in the indoor gym they used for practice.

He looked in Miyuki's room, Kuramochi's room, and even Eijun and Furuya's rooms. Still no sign of the second baseman. Looking in the laundry room and bathroom, he still couldn't find his brother. Deciding to just put the phone in his brother's room, he frowned when he saw the teen he'd been searching for lying on the bed reading a book.

"I didn't know you were in here," Haruichi said, closing the door to keep the cold out.

"I am. Did you want something?"

Haruichi held up his new cellphone before tossing Ryousuke's onto the bed. "Your early birthday/graduation gift. It was cheaper to get a family plan then just one."

Putting down his book, Ryousuke picked up the phone and flipped it open. "Thanks for bringing it to me." Shoulders slumping a little, Haruichi nodded and turned to leave. He'd hoped for a little more than that. "Haruichi." Turning, he blinked in shock at the sudden flash and looked from the phone in his brothers' hand to his grinning face.

Laughing, the older teen said, "I needed a contact photo for you."

Huffing slightly, and then glaring when another flash went off, Haruichi said, "You could have just asked."

"And where would the fun in that be?" Opening his phone and taking a photo of his brother in retaliation, Haruichi smiled a little. This was the most his brother had talked or joked with him in a while.

Beconing the younger closer, Ryousuke held his phone up. "Say 'Onii-tan' for me."

"No."

"Come on, just say it once."

"I don't want to!"

Tackling the younger teen, Ryousuke pinned him to the floor and started tickling his sides, knowing how ticklish Haruichi was. The slightly shorter teen squirmed as he laughed, attempting to dislodge his older brother.

"S-stop it!"

"Not until you say it."

"N-No!"

"Come on Haruichi, say it and I'll stop tickling you."

"A-Aniki!"

"'Onii-tan'."

"N-No!"

"You used to call me it all the time."

"T-That w-was when w-we were l-li-little!"

"Come on Haru-chan, just once."

"N-No!"

"Then I guess I'll never stop tickling you."

S-Stop! O-Onii-chan!"

Haruichi gasped for breath, tears leaking from his eyes, when his brother finally stopped tickling him. He laid still for a while, curling onto his side and holding his arms over his abused ribs protectively. He glared at his older brother when he heard the recording.

"D-Delete it!"

"Nope~ It's your ringtone now~"

"No!" Lunging for the phone, he attempted to delete it himself, only for Ryousuke to pull it away. "Aniki!"

"Hmm~"

"Delete it!"

"I'll delete it," Haruichi paused, looking hopeful, "If you tell me why you've been missing so many practices lately." Freezing, he pulled back and stared at his lap. Ryousuke put a hand on his brother's shoulder. "Haruichi, is something wrong?"

The younger Kominato didn't want to cry – there was really no reason for it – but he felt the telltale sign of the tears prickling the back of his eyes. He felt himself get pulled into a hug and his throat closed up. Ryousuke hadn't hugged him in years.

"Hey, what's wrong? Haruichi? Is someone hurting you? Are you hurt?"

Shaking his head, the crying teen clutched the front of his brother's shirt.

"Hey, what is it? What's wrong? Haru-chan?"

Sniffling, Haruichi muttered, "I…I t-thought you d-didn't care."

He was pulled back and his brother grasped his chin, forcing him to look up. "What made you think I didn't care?" He asked softly, wiping the tears from Haruichi's eyes.

"N-Nobody seemed t-to notice, w-when I missed practice. A-And you-you were al-always b-brushing me off."

He looked down again as Ryousuke heaved a large sigh. "Haruichi, I'm sorry if it seemed like that, but I'm going to graduate this year. That means I'm going to be busy. Add practice onto that, and I don't have a lot of free time. I didn't mean to make you feel that way."

Rubbing his eyes, Haruichi sat back on his own. "I k-know."

Running his hand in circles on his little brother's back, Ryousuke said, "Tell me what's going on." And Haruichi did. He started slowly, telling his brother about his friends before leading into Kotarou's idea, and finally what he'd been doing the past few months. He was thankful his older brother listened to it all quietly, not interrupting unless he needed a clarification. At the end, he pulled out his work phone and showed his brother the video.

When he was done, the two sat in silence for a while. Finally, Ryousuke asked, "Why didn't you tell me earlier?" Haruichi winched at the slight hurt in his voice.

"I _tried_. Every time I tried to tell you, you were too busy to listen."

Wrapping an arm around his little brother, Ryousuke sighed. "I'm sorry. I could –and should – have taken a few minutes to listen to what you had to say." Thinking about all he'd been told, he asked, "What made you decide to do this?" Seeing his brother's mouth open he clarified, "Besides your friends saying you should. Why did _you_ decide to do it?"

Looking at the ground again, Haruichi frowned at his lap. "I…didn't want to be invisible anymore."

Now Ryousuke frowned. "You're not invisible."

Rounding on his brother, pain clear in his eyes, he demanded, "Then why is it that outside of baseball, nobody seems to see me? Why is it that Eijun-kun and Furuya-kun – my so called _friends_ – didn't even notice I've missed practice or class? Why is it that when I nearly collapsed in class, the only people who noticed or seemed to care weren't even people I considered friends before? The only time people tend to take notice of me is when they want something, or when I'm playing baseball!" Curling his legs into his chest, he whispered, "I just wanted people to notice me for a change."

Ryousuke couldn't say anything to that. He'd known Haruichi had been sick a while ago, but he hadn't been in class when the older teen had passed by, and he figured his little brother had some sense to get some medicine and go to bed. Apparently that hadn't been the case.

Wiping the tears that were once again flowing down his little brother's cheeks, Ryousuke smiled. "Nobody's going to be able to ignore you anymore. When you set your mind to something, you don't stop until you're the best." Tugging Haruichi's hands forward, he said, "Just don't forget about your family when you're famous."

Sniffling and giving the older Kominato a smile, Haruichi nodded. "P-Promise."

"Good. Now why don't you tell me about these friends of yours." Perking up, Haruichi scooted back until he was sitting against the headboard next to his older brother and began describing his friends.

* * *

 **And we've come to the end now (with the longest chapter!). You should know I was _this_ close to making this part sad, and having Ryousuke not make up with Haruichi. In the end, though, I think I like this way better. I hope you enjoyed this story as much as I enjoyed writing it! Don't forget to let me know what you thought!**


End file.
